Fragile
by Misguided Angel of Death
Summary: Discontinued. Reasons in profle.
1. Back Home

A/N: The main pairing for this story is NejixTenten. Other pairings include: LeexOC, NaruxHina, SakuraxSasuke, InoxOC, ShikaxTemari. No flames for these pairings are accepted.

Summary: Tenten has been away from her home village for six months due to a mission. When she returns, why does she refuse to tell anyone the truth about her absence? There is another jinchuriki in the Hidden Leaf Village. Who is it, and can Naruto help her figure out what she is?

_Chapter 1_

Neji woke with a jolt as a loud 'bang' echoed throughout his room. He sharply sat up, only to be lifted up and crushed by some weird green thing in spandex.

"Lee! Let me go!" He yelled.

His teammate, (although he did seem a little disappointed) let him go. But his bouncing didn't stop. "Guess what, Neji? Come on guess!" He could barely contain his excitement.

Neji sighed. "What." He muttered.

"They found Tenten! Tenten is back!"

Neji's eyes widened to a considerable amount. _Tenten? _"After six months?"

Lee nodded energetically. "Yeah! She's been admitted into the Konoha hospital, though, but at least she's not dead, as we had thought!"

Neji stared down at his bedroom floor. Despite Lee's eargerness, he couldn't bring himself to admit that Tenten reappeared after six months. If she wasn't dead, then what the hell happened to make her stay away that long?

"I'm going to go see her. Are you coming?" Lee asked, calming down, but only a little bit.

"Yeah, just give me a minute."

"Alright."

"………………."

"……………….."

"……………………………..."

"……………………………..."

"Neji why are you in your boxers?"

"GET OUT OF MY ROOM!!!!!"

About an hour later, the two made their way out of the Hyuga clan mansion and began on their way to the hospital. They only stepped three feet before their sensei appeared before them.

"Gai-sensei!"

'_Oh, great'_

"Lee! Neji! I see you're on your way to the hospital as well!" His teeth flashed brightly as he placed his hands on his hips. He reminded Neji of Superman. A really, _really_ messed up Superman.

"Yes. We heard Tenten was back and we were going to go see how she was doing." Lee responded.

Gai nodded. "That's my boy! Always looking out for his teammates!"

Neji rolled his eyes. He had long ago left the two spandex clad ninja behind.

"Hey, Gai-sensei?"

"Yes Lee?"

"Is it alright to wear boxers?"

Neji promptly fell on his face in mid-walk. Even Gai-sensei was caught off guard with that question.

"What do you mean?"

"Is it like, acceptable to wear boxers under spandex? Or is it wrong?" Lee questioned.

Neji secretly hoped that Gai-sensei wouldn't give him a retarded answer like…

"As long as you're comfortable nothing can go wrong!"

_Exactly_ like that one.

Lee 'woo-hooed' and hugged his sensei, who in return, hugged back. "Thank you Gai-sensei!" He turned to Neji. "What about…….huh?"

Neji had ran. He ran far, far ,far away from them.

"Tenten-san, may I come in? You have some visitors here." The nurse opened the door, looking at the patient inside.

Neji was the first to step in, his eyes meeting with Tenten's deep brown ones. He nearly winced at the sight of all the bandages covering her body. Her arm was wrapped and held in a sling, he immediately thought it was broken. Her hair was out it's two usual buns, allowing it to flow freely down her back. Her forehead was also wrapped in bandages.

"Hey….Neji." She said, her voice seemed strained.

Neji opened his mouth to speak, however, a green blur rushed by him and into the room, right by Tenten's bed.

"Tenten! What happened? Why were you gone so long? Are you going to be okay? Did you know Neji wears boxers?" He bombarded Tenten with a barrage of questions, the last of which earned him a punch upside the head.

"Uhhh….I guess I should get to explaining, shouldn't I…" She muttered to herself as Neji reprimanded Lee for telling his personal business.

Tenten cleared her throat and directed the attention towards herself.

"It's only right that I tell you what happened, after all, you guys are my teammates." She began. That quickly caused them to settle down. Neji grabbed a seat on the other side of Tenten's bed, not to close, but close enough to hear anything she had to say.

"First of all, I want you guys to know that I didn't mean to stay away so long. The mission I was on required me, and _only_ me,_" _She added, seeing Lee about to object, "to infiltrate a mansion in Kumogakure and watch the actions of one of the village advisors. He had been suspected of plotting an attack against Konoha, so Tsunade-sama decided to send me to go observe his actions."

"The first month was okay, I learned enough information to confirm our suspicions. During the middle of the second month, I began to make plans to leave. But then, more and more information kept piling up. Too valuable to just let slide by. Not only was the lord plooting against Konoha, but he was also plotting against Sunagakura, Kirigakura, and Iwagakure."

Neji's eyes widened. "You mean…"

Tenten nodded. "His plans were to take out all the shinobi villages to gain military power."

"That's insane!" Lee shouted.

"I know. That's why Tsunade-sama ordered for me to return to Konoha. She said that she was going to send ANBU ninja to come fill in for me and take care of this psycho. But…." She took a deep breath. Even the memories haunted her. "But he found me out during the third month. And he wouldn't let me leave." She looked down at her arm. "_This_ is what happened when I tried to get away." Her voice had gotten softer when she mentioned her own injuries. "It took me forever to figure out a way for me to get out of that hell hole. That's why it's been so long….."

"Is he dead?"

Tenten and Lee looked up, at the lavender eyed Hyuga. His head was tilted at an angle so that his hair shadowed his eyes.

"I…don't know….The ANBU had came and rescued me, and I was on my way to Konoha, but none of the ANBU members had survived. The lord's body hasn't been found yet."

Neji was about to speak, but instead he turned to the door. It opened, and a nurse poked her head in. "I'm truly sorry, but we need to distribute our patient's medicine. You can come visit later."

Neji and Lee nodded and stood up. They promised to come back later and get her something. She thanked them and as they exited, she sighed.

_I can't tell him the truth….I can't risk his life…..not for my stupid mistake. _

"_Hey, Neji, I like green, so should I get green boxers? Or should I get pink ones?" Lee asked as he walked Neji to his room._

_Neji stopped walking. "Why pink?" _

"_For Sakura and our undying love!!!" Lee shouted as he slammed his fist in the air. _

_Neji sighed deeply. His teammate still didn't get it… "Lee, she's _married_ to Sasuke Uchiha. She is now Sakura _Uchiha_. Why would you go after a married and _pregnant_ woman?"_

_Lee's mood seemed to fall considerably at now married crush. "But…" He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up. To see the Hyuga prodigy giving him a reassuring, if not forced, smile. _

"_Don't worry, there are other girls out there for you. The whole world doesn't just have one." He said, stepping into his room and leaving a dazed Lee outside in the hall. _

_He blinked for a few minutes. "Other….girls?" He had always known there were more out there, but what one would even have a second thought about being his girlfriend? _

_End Flashback_

Lee walked out of the Hyuga clan mansion in a somber mood. As he walked down the streets of Konoha, he thought about Neji's advice. _Where am I going to find a girl who won't turn me down? _He thought, not paying any attention to where he was going. He walked straight into someone who was walking towards him.

"Oh! I'm sorry!

Lee looked up, startled at the shaky, feminine voice that was in front of him. He looked up and found himself staring into two of the prettiest violet eyes he had ever seen.

"There's no need to apologize. It's me who should have been watching where I was going." Lee responded.

He couldn't take his eyes off her. Light violet eyes, long silver tresses that stopped halfway down her back. Two strands were left to fall down the sides of her face. She wore a pale pink shirt, the red sleeves wrapped around her middle finger and extended all the way up to her shoulder. The back of the sleeves were mesh. The sleeves connected in the back somehow with brown straps. The same type of straps outlined the top of her halter top, and criss-crossed on the back and to the front, across her toned midriff. She used those straps to hold her small sword in the back and two small scrolls on the side. The bottom half of her outfit consisted of a light pink skirt with a brown belt wrapped around her waist. Under the skirt she wore fishnet leggings that were cut off a little above her knees. Bandages were strapped to her upper right thigh, where she held her kunai holder in place. She wore open toed knee high brown boots that matched perfectly with her outfit.

Lee finally looked up when the girl moved. She reached up to mess with the red forehead protector around her neck. He could tell she was uncomfortable with his staring, and the light blush on her cheeks gave it away.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare." Lee apologized.

"I-It's alright." She stammered in reply.

They both stood there in awkward silence, neither being able to say a thing.

"Well…I-I should…"

"I need to…."

They both left, going in different directions. The kunoichi 's heart was racing as she walked. _Who..Who was that? I've never seen someone so…._ She found herself blushing as she made her way to her destination.

Lee was no better off. He was breathing heavily and he couldn't organize his thoughts. _Is this what Neji was talking about earlier? There are other girls that might go out with me?_

He made a mental note to find that girl again after his training tomorrow.

Neji stood in front of the flower shop. He had told Tenten he was going to bring her something the next time he visited, but he had trouble figuring out just what to get her. So, he decided to ask Hinata for advice. She had told him the most common thing to give someone while they're in the hospital was flowers, or a stuffed animal. The stuffed animal he had already taken care of. He found a medium-sized grey stuffed cat with a red ribbon around it's neck to give her. But, the flowers were giving him a hard time.

"Need some help, Neji?"  
Neji looked up to see Ino staring at him with one hand on her hip.

"Uhh…well….I need something to…uh, give someone."

Ino raised her eyebrow at his way of expressing himself. He obviously wasn't very good at it. She sighed, shaking her head slightly. It was pathetic.

"Alright, first of all, is this 'someone' in the hospital? Because if they are, it's best not to get them a rooted plant. It's bad luck."

"Uh, Yes, she is." Neji answered.

"Okay, next question." Ino looked over the collection of flowers before her. "Do you like, love or cherish this person in any way other than a friend? If so, you should get them red roses. Especially if you love them. If you like that person, you should get them a lighter colored rose, like pink or white. If she's just your friend, you should get her something like a daffodil or a tulip. So Neji…" Ino looked up at Neji, one eyebrow raised. "Which is it?"

Neji stared blankly at her. Honestly, he didn't know what to think. He wasn't really paying attention to her explanations, he was too busy thinking of other things, like the person he was doing all this for. So, he just picked flowers that were her favorite color.

"Alright, here you go. Thanks for stopping by the Yamanaka Flower Shop!"

Tenten woke up late at night. The anesthesia the nurse put her under had knocked her out so quickly. Her whole body felt numb. She turned her head to the side. Her eyes widened when she saw a mini bouquet of pink roses sitting in a clear glass, vase on the nightstand with a stuffed animal.

"So thoughtful…..I wonder who…..?"

Tenten went to sleep with a smile adorning her face.

Kazuki's Corner: Whew! There's the first chapter. I know it's short, but I'm not good at starting fanfics off. Well, read and review! P.S.- No flames accepted. If you don't have something constructive to say, then don't review.


	2. Double Date?

Kazuki: I don't own a damn thing. Do I Itachi-sama?

Itachi: No.

Kazuki: _**jumps up and down**_ Yay!

_Chapter 2_

It was nearly 8:00 in the morning when she woke up. The sun was already up in the sky. She sighed lightly. She had wanted to watch the sunrise this morning. But, now that she thought about it, after last night, there was no possible way she could have woke up at 5:30 just to watch it.

Spending time with her fiance was better than watching a sunset that came every morning.

Hinata gazed warmly at the peaceful expression on the sleeping being beside her. She gently placed her palm on her fiance's cheek, giggling lightly when he smirked, one that only he could do.

"Mmm….Hinata-chan." He murmured.

Hinata smiled, cause he nuzzled against her stomach as he said that.

His expressive blue eyes opened, causing Hinata to gasp. She did that whenever he looked at her like that.

"Morning, Hinata-chan." He muttered, yawning as he stretched out his entire length. Sweat glistened on his chest and the sun made his body glisten like a god.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun." She smiled as she looked down at him. "Do you want some breakfast?"

Naruto smirked. "That'd be nice." he said, locking his eyes with her. He propped himself up on his elbow, leaning forward to rub his nose against hers in a classic Eskimo kiss.

Hinata giggled once again and stood up, walking to her closet. Naruto's eyes were on her all the way there. She was wearing a lavender lace bra with matching panties that tied at the sides.

_Hm…she must have tied them back together sometime last night. _

She pulled out a lilac robe on a hanger. It was decorated with purple flowers with pink buds. Some of them were revered in color. She tied it at the waist with a white sash. Now dressed, she sauntered back to the bed, kissing Naruto on the lips before she proceeded downstairs to cook him some breakfast.

Naruto leaned back on the bed, his arms resting behind his head. He considered he extremely lucky to have a woman like her around.

He could already smell the food from the kitchen through the air vents. _Damn, she's such a good cook._ He thought as he walked to the bathroom to take his shower.

Hell yeah, anyone would want this kind of life.

Gai noticed there was something wrong when lee couldn't dodge the tree trunk that he threw at him. Now he was lying on his back, staring into the sky.

"Lee."

Lee sat up, rubbing the back of his head. "Uh, sorry, Gai-sensei."

Gai shook his head. "Lee you seem distracted. What's wrong?"

Lee's heavy sigh let his sensei know that he was right to assume something was wrong.

"Gai-sensei, what does love feel like?"

The spandex clad jounin blinked, confused, but then he smiled warmly at his student.

"So that's what's wrong. You've met a new girl."

Lee nodded sadly. "Yes, but I'm not sure if she's available. And when I tried to talk to her, I started stuttering." He shook his head, as if to clear his thoughts. "I never stuttered like that around Sakura before."

Gai nodded, taking in all that his protégé said. "Okay, we're breaking off from training today."

Lee's round eyes widened. "B-But!"

Gai-sensei flashed his teeth and stuck out his thumb in a classic 'nice-guy' pose. "We're going to find this girl and we're going to work on your social skills with the females!"

When Neji heard Lee's new assignment, his jaw nearly dropped. "Say what?"

'I'm supposed to practice my skills around the female community. Come, on, Neji! Come help me out!"

Neji stared at Lee as though he was crazy. How the hell was he supposed to help him do something like that?

Yet the words that spilled from his lips were not the ones in his mind. "Alright."

"Yes! Thank you!"

Lee stood nervously in front of the double doors of the mansion. He had found out who she was and where she lived, thanks to the Fifth Hokage…

At the Hokage's office

"_Who is it you want to find?' Tsunade asked, raising an eyebrow at the trio standing in front of her. _

"_Well, we don't exactly know her name…but…" Lee went into a full detailed description of the girl he met the day before. _

"_A short sword? Scroll?" Tsunade went into deep thought. "Silver hair and dark violet eyes….Oh!" The Godaime's eyes suddenly lit up. "I know who she is."_

_Lee nearly jumped for joy. "Really? Could you tell me, please?" _

_Tsunade couldn't resist the pleading look from the young ninja and his sensei. She wasn't surprised that Neji looked indifferent. _

"_Sure, why not. It wouldn't hurt…" She wrote all the information on a piece of paper, handing it to the taijutsu user. "You should be able to find her now." _

"_Thank you Tsunade-sama!"_

'_Anytime, Lee, anytime."_

Back to the present

Now he was beginning to have second thoughts. Neji and Gai stood by, but not on the front porch. He was alone. He gulped audibly and lifted his hand to ring the doorbell…Before he could, however, the doors swung open.

"I told you already! I'm going for a walk! Alone!"

Lee soon found himself lying on the ground, staring up into the sky. That would make it the second time today.

"Ami! Look what you've done!" A male voice shouted.

Lee sat up. He looked in front of him and couldn't believe his eyes. There, sitting up in front of him was his angel. Today she was wearing a tunic-length, red, and v- neck cami with baby blue shorts. A light pink belt hung loosely off her waist. She wasn't wearing her fishnet leggings, and red belt-like straps held her sword and scrolls this time. She was rubbing the back of her head, one of her eyes closed. "Oww…" She murmured.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" Lee blurted uncontrollably.

Ami looked up, finally noticing that Lee was sitting in front of her. A deep red blush began to cover her face. "Um…I-It's not your fault!"

They both just sat there, until Lee stood up and extended his hand to help her up. The kunoichi blush seemed to deepen as she took it. She was slightly amazed at the strength in that one hand that he used.

The boy behind her folded his arms. "See? You only cause trouble."

Lee could feel something that he hadn't felt before. Was it anger? No, it couldn't have been. How could he feel angry with someone he didn't even know? But, when Ami's hair began to shadow her eyes, her fists clenched, he could feel it rising in the pit of his stomach.

"Shut up….Kazuka…" Ami's voice had hardened. It wasn't as soft as it usually was.

On the sidewalk, Neji and Gai looked at each other. They could feel two different chakras rising. Neji activated his Byakugan to see the current situation. "Sensei…let's get Lee out of here before he starts something." He suggested.

Gai nodded in agreement and walked up to the mansion. He looked slightly shocked when a red blur ran past him. He barely had enough time to turn around before Lee appeared beside him.

"Gai-sensei, I shall return to complete my training later on in the evening." Was all he said before he disappeared in a flash.

Gai turned to Neji, who was about to go chase after him. "Don't."

Neji looked confused. "Why not?" He asked.

Gai shook his head. "This is something he has to do himself."

Neji understood, and deactivated his blood limit. "I just hope he can do it alone."

The two walked in silence back to the training grounds. They both believed in Lee. If he couldn't do it, then no one could.

"Wait, Ami!"

Ami stopped running and turned around. He had ran after her even when she headed straight into the woods. The trees surrounded them. Her eyes widened. She had thought her brother was chasing after her, not _him_. She nearly froze when he caught up with her.

"Really, you don't have to worry about me." She whispered, but not loud enough for him to hear.

"Are you alright?" He asked, obviously worried.

She looked at him, surprised. She nodded slowly. "I…I'm fine…you don't have to worry about me…..I'm used to this type of stuff." She said, her voice still soft, but at least it was a little louder this time.

Lee couldn't help but smile. She was just so…_cute._ "I don't….I don't want you to go through those things…" He said, not looking at her directly. He wasn't looking at her, so he didn't realize it when her eyes sparkled.

"Thank…you…" She whispered.

Lee looked up. "Huh?" His eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when felt slender arms wrap around him.

"Thank you." She said it with a little more confidence.

At first, Lee was frozen. Then it was like Ami's warmth melted him, and he slid his arm around her lower back, pulling her closer to him. A blush crept upon both of their faces.

"I…I don't know…I don't even know your name…" She breathed softly into his ear. It sent shivers down his spine when she did that.

"It's…It's Lee….Rock Lee…" He huffed out.

"Lee, huh? I like that…"

"Really?"

Ami nodded. "It's…nice."

They both smiled and pulled apart. Their faces were close. Really, really close.

But they saw the look on each others faces and stepped back. Both of their faces were about twelve different shades of red.

"Umm…." She couldn't get the words outs.

"Yeah…" It seemed as though he already understood though.

He cautiously took her hand into his own. It was so smooth and so pale compared to his own. Hand in hand, they made their way back to the main area, near the shops.

"Hey, Ami, are you hungry?"

"A little…"

"You want to get some ramen?"

"….Sure.."

**_Ichiraku Ramen Shop_**

"This ramen is so good! I never knew they had this flavor before!"

Ami slurped down the roast beef flavored ramen. Lee laughed, doing the same with his own pork flavored ramen. There was something different about this girl. Her style, the way she acts, how she talks when she isn't embarrassed. He noticed everything about her that he couldn't find in anyone else. Maybe she was the one after all.

"Hey, Lee-san?" Lee looked up, ramen being slurped into his mouth. "Hm?'

Ami eyed a piece of paper curiously on the table. "Um….." She pointed her chopsticks at the receipt. Lee took a glance at it. 'I'll take car of-"

"I'm paying half of it."

Lee looked up. What girl had ever offered to pay half the bill? "No…No I can't let you do that! It's my treat!"

Ami glanced at him sideways. "Are you sure?"

Lee nodded confidently. "I am sure."

She highly doubted that. After all, what kind of guy out there was nice enough to _not_ accept the offer for the girl to pay half the bill? She shrugged. He sure was different. When she finished her meal, sure enough, Lee paid the entire bill. And, if that wasn't enough, he gave Ayame a five dollar tip. Ami watched from the door.

_This guy sure is something else._ She thought. She didn't know people like him existed in this world, let alone Konoha.

When he was finished, he took her hand and they walked out together. They were both finding that they liked it better like this.

"Lee's got a girlfriend?" Tenten gasped, surprised. The nurse had admitted her from the hospital earlier that day, so she stood on the sidelines and watched Neji train with Gai-sensei. Her arm was still in that sling, but she already knew that wasn't going away any time soon unless Tsunade or Sakura healed it for her.

Neji nodded as he ducked from the punch coming from behind. He spun around and aimed for a leg sweep to trip his sensei up, but it didn't connect.

"Yeah, he's got one. Or, that's what I think."

Neji jumped high in the air when his sensei ran towards him. He used a few hand signs to create two shadow clones of himself and jumped back on the ground, all attacking Gai-sensei at the same time. Gai had a hard time keeping up with his student's speed, but he managed to punch one shadow clone into another. It should've disappeared, but it didn't. _I hit the real one?_ Neji stood up, smirked then vanished. Gai's eyes widened. There wasn't a Neji in sight. Gai looked around. So far, he couldn't see him anywhere. _Where are you, Neji? _He wondered. He glanced at Tenten, who shrugged in reply. "I don't know."

The jounin jumped in the air, spinning around and throwing four shuriken at the oncoming shinobi behind him. Like before, those clones, too disappeared. But that was the point. Gai was already in the air, so he didn't have time to react as Neji appeared behind him. "Nice try, sensei." He elbowed his sensei in the back, and as he moved forward from the force, his heel slammed down to send his sensei flying to the ground.

Gai coughed, but then stood up. This battle was different. If he had not added that stipulation of no jutsus, besides the shadow clone and substitution jutsu, then it wouldn't have involved Neji winning.

"Great job, Neji! You truly are a skilled ninja." Gai complemented.

Neji rolled his eyes. _Tell me something you haven't told me fifteen hundred times before. _

"That was awesome, Neji!" The spectator cheered from the side.

"Yeah, yeah…let's get going. It's getting dark."

Neji walked away from the training ground, Tenten following him loyally.

Gai sighed and smiled. _It seems as so Lee isn't the only one in love._

He, too, began to tend to his other duties, until an ANBU ninja jumped in front of him.

"Yes?"

"A situation has arisen. Please report to the Hokage's conference room at immediately."

The two nin left in blurs. Gai wondered what happened that was so important.

**_Hokage's conference room_**

"I thank you all for coming." Tsunade looked around the room. All the jounin, special jounin, and some ANBU ninja were in attendance. Kakashi, Kurenai, Asuma, and Gai were among them. Good, she needed them to hear this.

Beside her, Jiraiya sat, for once, not being lecherous and actually being serious about this.

"As you all know, the chunin exams are to be held in Sunagakure, meaning, our candidates must be ready to travel to the Land of Wind to compete. However, with Orochimaru's subordinates keeping watch on Suna and Konoha, we can't let those teams cross by themselves." She paused to let them take it all in. "The Kazekage and myself have decided to send the ANBU black ops to guard the path to and from the Fire country."

"So, what's the problem? If the ANBU are keeping guard, what do we have to worry about?" A new jounin asked.

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "I thought you would've figured out already."

Kakashi coughed behind his mask. "In order to send out ANBU ninja, we must also tell the Mizukage, the Tsuchikage, and the Raikage, of what is going on. You should know that like Konoha, Kumogakure and Iwagakure are under a strained peace treaty. Iwagakure would love to find a reason to start a war with either us or the Lightning Country, and sending our ANBU to escort their shinobi can be one surefire way to do so."

The jounin looked confused. "Huh? How?"

Kurenai sighed, "They could easily attack one of our ANBU. That, in turn , would lead to our troops to attack them back. Iwagakure, knowing them, would probably make their attack look like an accident, leaving our own ninja to look like suspects in the Tsuchikage's eyes. _That_ will break the treaty and start a full blown war. That is what we're avoiding, is it not?"

"And if a war starts now, during the chunin exams…" Asuma muttered.

"Then Orochimaru's attack will not be withheld. It will be Konoha defending itself against the Sound Village and the Village Hidden in the Rocks." Gai finished.

The jounin finally understood. "So...what are we going to do?"

Tsunade spoke up. "We're going to have to cancel this year's chunin exams. We can't risk another war with the Sound Village."

A light murmur filled the room as the shinobi talked amongst themselves about the situation.

"Cancel the chunin exams? That's preposterous!" One of the elders claimed.

"Is it? Then what exactly would you do, Tetsunaka?" Jiraiya piped up.

"Me? Let the war start! We have the Sand Village and the Cloud Village on our side, that outranks Iwagakure and the Sound Village!"

"Did you forget about the Akatsuki? Exactly whose side do you think they'll be on if we are harboring _two _jinchuriki?" Shizune asked, knowing full and well that every chunin, jounin, and ANBU knew of the second one in Konoha.

Everything went silent. They knew. _Everyone_ knew. The Akatsuki knew. But the hosts didn't know. Neither of them knew about the other.

"Well….if Naruto can't bring her to her senses then no one can." Tsunade muttered as she dismissed the meeting. She believed in Naruto and all of his capabilities to change one's personality. When the room was clear, with the exception of her, Jiraiya, and Kakashi, she sighed and slumped down in her chair.

"I honestly don't know what to do…" She admitted.

"Don't do anything."

"Huh?" The Godaime looked up at the masked ninja.

Kakashi absently turned the page of Jiraiya's newest Icha Icha book. "Don't do anything. Let Naruto work it out "

The answer made sense to her, so she nodded, agreeing. "Alright…I'll see if it works out this time."

Jiraiya spoke up. "As you said, Tsunade, if anyone can do it, it's Naruto. That kid's got more heart than any of us."

"You're right." Tsuande was about to thank the two for the advie, until she saw Jiraiya's eyes traveling out the corner of her eye. "Why you…" She growled turning towards the Toad Sannin. He gulped audibly, easily recognizing the murderous look in her eyes.

Kakashi silently dismissed himself as the beating began, Jiraiya's screams of apologies echoing through the room and into the hallway. _If that's how he gets all of his information, he is one strong man._ He thought as he left to his own home.

"Hey, Neji! Tenten!" The two nin stopped, turning around at the sound of their names. Neji couldn't hold back his smile. "Hey, Naruto."

The sight of the blond hand in hand with his soon-to-be wife was too cute not to smile. Hinata, now an ANBU like her fiance, wore attire that was different from the standard ANBU equipment.

"Nice," Tenten complimented as she took in Hinata's outfit. The female Hyuga smiled.

"Thanks. Ino helped me with it."

Like all ANBU, she wore black pants that were stuffed into her knee length Konoha sandals. But that's where the similarities ended. She wore her hair in a low ponytail, tied at the base of her neck with a black satin ribbon. She wore a black shirt that only had a solid part to cover her breasts. From below her breasts and further down was mesh, all the way up to her waist. The shirt had thin spaghetti straps that tied at the back of her neck, but her covered it. Fingerless black gloves extended all the way up to her elbows. Metal plates were on the back of the gloves, very useful for defensive matters. Neji knew that she had scrolls hidden somewhere within her attire, for he had seen plenty of them in her room before she had moved out to live with Naruto. He wasn't sure if she also had a sword or not, but if she did, she hid it from view.

Naruto, wore the standard ANBU equipment, complete with the katana on his back. He too wore fingerless gloves with metal plates on it, but his stopped just below his wrist. His hair had grown into longer spikes and, but Hinata had found that to be sexy.

"So, you two coming from a mission, or something? You two look all tired." Tenten observed, tilting her head slightly to the side. Naruto quickly answered.

"Yeah, but it was fuckin awesome!" He went on about how they went to the Hidden Sand Village and helped Temari and Kankuro assassinate a rogue sand nin who had recently tried to attack Gaara while he was sleeping. (A/N: After Shukaku was extracted, why wouldn't he sleep?)

Neji seemed surprised. "He was bold enough to attempt an attack on Gaara?" He nearly laughed. "Wow. Rookies these years..."

The four shinobi laughed, each remembering the times so long ago when they had been rookies. Together, they decided they had to meet up with the Rookie 9 and Lee's team later on in the month. Then suddenly, Naruto came up with a brilliant, yet embarrassing idea.

"Hey, why don' t we go on a double date?"

Neji and Tenten both turned at least four shades of pink. "W-wh-what?"

Naruto looked confused, as Hinata just giggled. "Huh? What you two so embarrassed for? Don't you go out?"

It was then Tenten discovered how many different designs you could make in the earth by kicking your foot lightly. Neji had flung his arm around Naruto's neck, choking him while he explained that he and Tenten weren't going out.

"But don't you want to?" Naruto replied, confused.

Neji froze, his arm lightly falling to his side. He couldn't answer that. If Naruto found out anything, then it would probably be in the Konoha newspaper in less than two hours later. But Naruto had grown, hadn't he? He was seventeen now, why couldn't he keep a secret?

Hinata and Tenten watched curiously as the two males whispered amongst themselves.

"What could they possibly be talking about?" Hinata questioned, watching, slightly amused as Neji hit Naruto in the back of his head.

"I don't know..." Tenten hadn't really been paying attention. Naruto's words still floated in her head. _Double date...You two go out..._Tenten only snapped out of it when a male voice screamed. Loudly. She looked up, and was shocked to see it was Neji. She blinked her eyes and looked to Hinata, who was wide eyed and trying not to laugh at her cousin.

"Uh...Hinata? Why is Neji kneeling on the ground?" She asked, truly confused. Naruto was flipping out, apologizing and trying to help Neji out.

"Well, Naruto-kun had a bug crawling up his foot...so he tried to kick it off...Neji told him to calm down...but Naruto wasn't listening...and he ending up...well, kicking Neji..."

Tenten looked at Neji, and the piece clicked to as where Naruto kicked him. She gasped and covered her mouth, in a vain attempt not to laugh. It instead came out a slight giggle. Although there was a slight blush on her face.

"Neji, I swear I didn't mean to!" Naruto tried.

"Naruto...Shut...Up..." The Hyuga prodigy managed to squeak out.

Hinata took Tenten and not exactly out of earshot, burst out laughing. Neji glared at her. _Oh I'm gonna get you back, Hinata, you just wait. _He vowed, standing up and proceeding to beat the living hell out of Uzumaki.

'Wait! Wait, Neji I'm sorry! It was an accident!!! I swear!!!!!"

Kazuki's corner: Well that ends chapter 2. All Neji fangirls, you will obey me and stay away!! It was my friend's idea to put that in there, it had nothing to do with me!! breaths then continues Anyways...I had to change the summary thing cause I completely forgot to mention something extremely important in the story...that, and I forgot the disclaimer in the last chapter. Well I've said it before and I'll say it many more times in this story:

REVIEW!!!!!!!


	3. An Unexpected Mission

Kazuki: Back again with chapter 3! Sorry for the wait, things came up and fanfiction writing wasn't on the top of the 'to do' list. Please forgive me! Anyways, thanks to all who have reviewed and for the people who haven't reviewed, but put me on their favorites...well, of course I'll tell you to review, that's obvious, but come on! It's no fun without the reviews! It helps me write when people actually like my story! Anyways, I've been trying to update sooner, but between moving and starting a new school, I haven't found much time to work on it. Sorry about that, everyone. Okay, enough talk. On with the chappie!

Itachi: Aren't you forgetting something?

Kazuki: What? I thanked the reviewers, and I apologized, what else?

Itachi: Your disclaimer...

Kazuki: Oh! I do not own Naruto or any of it's characters. I only own my story, my plot, and my characters. Happy now, Itachi-sama?

Itachi:...

Kazuki: Yay!

Fragile: Chapter 3

Neji sighed as he made his way to the Hokage's office. _Another day, another mission._ He thought as he knocked on her door. Shizune answered it in less than thirty seconds.

"Oh, Neji, it's you. Come in, Tsunade-sama's been expecting you."

Neji nodded, stepping into the female Hokage's office.

"Morning, Neji." Tsunade greeted, sipping some coffee. "How's the team?"

"They're fine."

"Good, good." Tsunade put down her mug. "Okay, you know why you're here. You're being put on a mission to escort the Mizukage to Suna for a conference." She handed him a paper. "There's your team. The mission should take about a week starting tomorrow."

Neji nodded as he looked at the members of his team. _Lee...Ami...Ino? _He raised an eyebrow. "What about Tenten?"

The Hokage sighed. "Neji, you know as well as I do that she has not fully recovered from her last mission. Even though Sakura healed her arm, sending her on a mission so soon could make her condition worse."

The Hyuga agreed hesitantly. He had never been captain of a team without Tenten before, but he understood what it took to keep her safe. He knew that if she came with him this time, it would only be risking her well-being. "Alright."

Tsunade smiled and drank some more coffee. "Dismissed." The lavender eyed nin disappeared in a blur as Shizune entered the room.

"Hey, Shizune, could you get me some more coffee?" Shizune nodded and went to retrieve the Hokage some more coffee.

Tsunade held her head in her hands. _This hangover just won't go away..._

"What?! Injuries my ass, I want to go!"

He knew she'd react this way. Ever since he revealed to his usual team that one of them would be replaced, all he's heard was complaints and whining.

"Listen, you two," Lee and Tenten stopped talking and looked at Neji. "It's not my choice who's on my team. And Tenten, you're still recovering. I don't want you to get hurt and make everything worse."

Tenten blinked, then looked at the ground sadly. Even though she wanted to go, she knew that Neji was doing this for her own good. She couldn't change that. She nodded, and even though her bangs hid her eyes, Neji knew that she hated being left behind.

Lee spoke up then. "Why did Hokage-sama choose Ami to be on our team?"

Neji shrugged. "I don't know. I can't read her mind."

Lee stood up. "I'll go tell Ami about the mission." He bounced off, towards Ami's clan house with a sparkle in his eyes. Anyone could tell he loved that girl.

Tenten stood up, causing Neji to look at her, concerned. He knew that he let her down, but what else could he do? "Tenten..."

She turned around, smiling with her eyes closed. "It's alright, Neji. I understand why I can't go this time. I'll just train a little while you guys are gone. Good luck." She left before he could respond. He stared after her, not having the guts to tell her to wait. Instead, he walked the other way, heading to the Hyuga mansion to alert Hiashi of his mission.

Neither of them looked back.

**The Day of the Mission**

Ami pulled on her boots and walked out the door. Her headband was worn loosely around her waist. When Lee had told her that they'd be on a mission together, she wanted to look her best. A whole _week_ together with her boyfriend made her smile every second. Hesitantly, she wondered which sleeveless vest she should wear with her outfit.

"Try the red one." She rolled her eyes at the oh-so-familiar voice of her brother.

"Since when did the Captain of the ANBU know anything about female fashion?" She asked sarcastically, glancing over her shoulder at him. His gray eyes stared at her, his little sister, going on a mission that for once, he wasn't on.

"You know how dangerous it'll be, right? You're escorting a Kage to another village. People could be out to kill that Kage." He informed her, his voice blunt.

Ami sighed and tugged the red vest (who knew that he actually would've made a good choice) over her strapless light pink halter top. "Brother, I know. I've been on plenty of missions before, this is no different." She grabbed a red hair tie from off her dresser and pulled her hair into a low ponytail, deciding to leave her bangs out.

"But you've never escorted a Kage before." She sighed. Her brother was so protective of her.

She turned to face him. "Don't worry, Tamotsu, I'll be fine." Ami walked over to him, standing on her toes to kiss his forehead. Then she walked passed him, slinging a traveling pack over her shoulder. "See ya in a week. Tell Katashi where I went, alright?"

Tamotsu nodded. He knew that she never referred to him as 'father' but he didn't blame her. He wasn't one of the best people in the world. "Sure thing."

He walked with her to the door. As soon as she opened it, she found herself face to face with Lee.

"Oh! Lee!" The blush began to spread again.

"He he...Hi Ami. I just came to see if you were ready."

"Yeah. Let's go."

She waved bye to her brother, who returned it with a smile as she left. He shook his head and closed the door. _They're so cute together._ He thought to himself as he began to do his daily chores.

"_Hey, Ino, come here for a minute."_

"_Sure what is it?"_

"_I wanted to ask you something, in private." _

"_That's fine. Hey, Neji, I'll be back in a second!"_

_They left to an isolated area._

"_What is it?" _

"_I'm sorry."_

"_What?" Darkness._

Ino strode beyond the Konoha gates, greeting Neji and the others. She was smiling and fixing her hair. "You guys ready?"

Everyone nodded, and left Konoha to begin on their mission. During the walk, Neji noticed that Ino stood closer to him than she normally would. He raised an eyebrow at this, but decided it was because she didn't want to be alone, seeing as Ami was occupied with Lee.

"Hey, Neji, why isn't Tenten on this mission with you guys? I thought that's how it usually goes." The blue eyed female questioned, trying to start a conversation.

Neji sighed. "She's still injured," He explained for the fifteenth time in the last two days. "I didn't want her to get hurt, that's all."

Ino nodded. Then she asked a question that she was notorious for.

"You two go out don't you?"

Neji had nearly stopped his walk, but for some reason he was getting used to that question.

"No." He intended to leave it there.

"But I heard you like her more than a training partner." She pushed on.

That was when Neji did stop walking. "Who told you that?"

"Oh, no one important." Neji was about to question her further, wondering if Naruto opened his HUGE mouth, but she beat him to the next sentence. 'So, do you like her? More than a training partner?"

Neji began to walk again as he thought about these questions Ino was asking, and how they reminded him of Naruto's questions. Was it that obvious?

"I...guess..." He finally sighed. He didn't notice her eyes light up.

"Really? So why don't you two hook up or something?" She prodded.

Neji was about to answer before a large 'thud' caught his attention. The two shinobi looked up to find Lee lying face down in the ground with Ami kneeling beside him to see if he was alright.

"What happened?" Neji asked, on guard in case it was some kind of ambush.

Ami shook her head and sighed. "He tripped." She stated.

"Oww..."

Neji rolled his eyes. How did his teammate get so clumsy over the years? Since he was distracted, he forgot all about Ino's interrogation. But she didn't back down.

"Hey, Neji, you didn't answer my question!" She reminded him. She could've swore she saw a faint blush on his cheeks.

"I dunno...what if she doesn't even like me like that?" It was hardly believable that _the_ Hyuga Neji was having a conversation about relationships with Ino, the number one matchmaker of the leaf village. And, to top it off, he was spilling everything he felt about his teammate to her without warning.

"What if I told you that I know for a fact that she likes you more than a friend?"

Neji blinked. "Then...I guess I'll start to believe that you're conspiring with Hinata to hook us up, so you might just be lying just to get me to ask her out." He answered.

He didn't see the hurt look that flashed in her blue eyes.

"But what if it were true?" She continued, "What if she did like you like that?"

"Then I guess I'll handle things myself."

Ino decided to drop leave the conversation at that. It made no point in making the leader of the team angry. She sighed and stayed silent for the rest of the way to the Hidden Mist Village.

What made Neji nervous, however, was the look in her eyes whenever he caught her glances. Those looks reminded him of Tenten when he had last saw her in Konoha. It was those looks that made him miss her. It was those looks that made him wonder what was Ino hiding?

**Village Hidden in The Mist**

"So, I take it you are the shinobi here to escort me to Sunagakure?"

The Mizukage questioned the four shinobi standing in front of him. His blue-gray eyes stared in disdain at the two females of the group, however. The entire shinobi team caught those looks. Neji sent a sideways glance to Lee, who nodded discretely. They were to be on their top guard around him. It was obvious he didn't fancy the idea of being protected by kunoichi.

"Yes, sir. Are you prepared to take this trip?" Lee asked, his voice more respectful and mature than it was when he was with his friends.

The Mizukage nodded and stood up. Two women bowed as he left the room, obviously showing respect for the higher power in their presence. Ino and Ami did no such thing, causing a collective gasp from the other females.

"If he thinks I'm going to bow to him he's got something else coming." Ami muttered to Ino as they followed Neji and Lee out the door. Ino agreed by nodding, her blue eyes steeled as she stared ahead.

It didn't take long to return on the path going back to the Land of Fire. Although the trip in the boat didn't appeal to Ami so much, she said nothing of taking another route. Lee had rubbed her back to make sure she didn't get too sick during the ride.

"So...you're from the Hyuga clan?" The Mizukage looked at Neji expectantly. His question was answered with a swift nod. "So why did that Hokage of yours send someone of such caliber on the same team with..._these _type of shinobi?" The way he referred to the others made the Konoha nin's blood boil.

"For one, they happen to be some of the top shinobi in the Hidden Leaf Village. Also, if Hokage-sama did not trust in our abilities as a team, do you honestly think that she would've assigned us this mission?"

"Hmph. I'm sure she wouldn't have."

The Mizukage's tone made Ami growl. _Who does he think he is? Talking about us like that?! _She clenched the black fabric of her pants in frustration. She despised people who considered themselves of higher worth than others. It annoyed her to no end. But it wasn't only Ami whose intolerance for the Kage was growing steadily. Each nin from Konoha felt the same way.

This was going to be one long mission.

**On the Road to Sunagakure (Day 2)**

Team Neji had devised a plan in order to keep the Yoshiro safe. (They had discovered his name through harmless interrogation the night before.) Neji would be behind him, because of his Byakugan, Ino in front, with Ami and Lee flanking each of his sides. The importance of the conference in Suna was still confidential, which made Lee wonder why all of this precaution was being made. He never mentioned it though, he didn't want to seem disrespectful.

They walked for hours, not saying a word amongst each other. Often, Lee and Ami sent knowing glances to each other and erupted in fits of giggles, which pulled disapproving looks from Yoshiro, although the two could care less. Ino hadn't said a word unless she was asked a question ever since her talk with Neji. Vivid thoughts ran through her mind.

_I never knew...All this time, he never showed it..._

They stopped walking when the presence of another set of chakras became noticeable. Neji activated his Byakugan to check the surrounding area. The team closed around Yoshiro tightly, waiting for Neji's order. Sweat trickled down Ino's face.

"Alright...there's sixty men...from the rock village, I believe. Get ready you guys, they know we've spotted them. We went over the plan...you guys know what to do, right?" Everyone nodded, except Ino, who was frozen. _Oh God! What am I gonna do? _

"Okay...on the count of three..." Neji began as the nin moved closer. "One...two...THREE!" He spun around, jumping out to stop some of the men.

Ami bit into her thumb and preformed a few hand signs. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" A cloud of gray smoke surrounded her and Yoshiro. When it cleared, beside them stood a five foot white tiger with teal colored eyes. Two swords rested on the feline's back, and Ami grabbed one of them.

"Hm? Ami? You always call me out so soon." The feline muttered in a feminine voice.

"Hahaha, this time there's a reason, Sumi. Gotta protect the Mizukage." Ami explained.

"Ah...I see. Alright then." Sumi's tail reached up to wrap around the katana and pull it out of it's sheath. She took it into her mouth and stared at Ami expectantly.

Ami began performing a few more hand signs, ending with 'tiger'. "Come on Sumi, let's go." She said, the short sword on her back having been transformed into a regular sized katana. Now she had two. With one last glance at the Mizukage, she disappeared in a blur, both her and Sumi attacking from opposite sides. The summoned tiger used the sword to slash at people, while her claws prevented attacking from any others. Ami had taken to slicing and stabbing anyone who dared to attack. Everything was going according to plan.

Lee was standing beside Yoshiro, attacking any nin idiotic enough to try and get that close. The battles were making him stray from the Mizukage's side, although he tried to stay as close as possible to protect him. He was faster than most of those ninjas, most of whom were only of Chuunin rank. Only a few were Jounin, and they weren't that hard. They just provided a little more challenge than the other ones.

Neji soon found himself using the Hakke Rokujuu Yonshu_ **(Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms) **_a lot to keep the Kage safe. By the time he defeated ten of the ambushing ninja, he was out of breath. "Ino! Help us out, here!" He shouted, using his Divine Spin to stop the oncoming attacks of the ninja.

Ino gulped and pulled out about five kunai and threw them, each of them hitting their targets dead on.

"Ino! What are you doing? Stick to the plan!" Ami shouted, barely dodging the shuriken coming at her head.

Ino close her eyes tightly.

"Ino!"

"I'm sorry!" A cloud of smoke surrounded the blond, obscuring her figure from view. If the figure was there at all. The others looked on in shock and disbelief.

"What the-?!" Lee muttered in disbelief.

The smoke dissipated, but it wasn't Ino who was left standing...

"Tenten?!"

**Don't cha just hate Cliffhangers?**


	4. Feelings

Inspiration Song(s): It's Been Awhile by Staind

Kazuki: Finally!! I have FINALLY updated!! You will never know how many times I retyped, reread, and looked over this chapter. And no matter what I do, it **still** looks like crap! Gawd!! The ending sucks more than anything and I think I rushed too much. I could've done **much **better. –cries- I am sorry, minna-san! Even though I updated, I probably let you all down with this crappy thing!! I am sorry! I promise I will make it better (and upload it faster) next time, okay? -mutters- It didn't help that my Beta didn't look through this...so please forgive any mistakes! –sniffles- Now then…

Do the stupid disclaimer!!

Itachi: You lack patience…

Kazuki: -.- Itachi….

Itachi: Kazuki does not own Naruto or it's mentally dysfunctional characters.

Kazuki: o.o?

Naruto cast: HEY!!!

Itachi:...

Kazuki: -mutters- You're no ANYWAYS on with the chapter!!

**Fragile: Chapter 4**

_Last time on Fragile:_

_"Ino! What are you doing? Stick to the plan!" Ami shouted, barely dodging the shuriken coming at her head._

_Ino close her eyes tightly._

_"Ino!"_

_"I'm sorry!" A cloud of smoke surrounded the blond, obscuring her figure from view. If the figure was there at all. The others looked on in shock and disbelief._

_"What the-?!" Lee muttered in disbelief._

_The smoke dissipated, but it wasn't Ino who was left standing..._

_"Tenten?!"_

_**Back In Konoha**_

A pink haired jounin hummed lightly as she walked through the Konoha streets. She passed by an alley, only stopping when she heard a noise. "Eh? Is someone there?" She called out, stepping into the shadowed corner.

"MM-MMMM-MMMMM-MMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!" The sound was muffled, as if someone was screaming through some sort of restraint.

Sakura blinked before looking behind a garbage bin. Her eyes widened at what she saw.

"Ino?! What happened?! I thought you were on a mission!"

**Back to the Mission**

"Tenten?!" The trio, and the Mizukage all stared wide-eyes at the brown eyed weapons mistress. She was staring at the ground, not allowing her gaze to wander up to either of her teammates. Lee was about to question her, but Neji knew better than to let it distract him for long; they would be killed if they got too off track.

"Okay, this makes a lot of things easier now that Tenten's here." He said, taking advantage of her presence. "Ami, you stay by Mizukage-sama. Lee, Let's go!" The occupants of Team Neji nodded in compliance, knowing what to do.

Together, the three childhood teammates spread out to form an equilateral triangle, each protecting the Mizukage from a different angle. Of course, there were many ways the enemy could get through that formation, but that was why Ami and Sumi were there: to cover the blind spots. Neji looked to his other teammates, nodded, and turned to the approaching enemies.

He smirked. Now that their usual attack pattern was formed, the Iwa nins didn't stand a chance.

**An Hour Later**

Yoshiro was resting comfortably in the tent he brought along. At first, the others thought he would want something more than to sleep in the tent, but surprisingly, he didn't complain at all. Ever since the battle between the shinobi ended, he hadn't said a word. However, he wasn't the only one.

Neji couldn't believe that she didn't listen to him. He told her to stay in Konoha, for her own safety. And she ignored him. During the walk before they set up camp, he hadn't said anything to her. Likewise, she didn't say anything to him. Yet they had so much talking to do, and for her, a lot of explaining.

Lee honestly didn't know how to react when he had first saw Tenten. He, like the others, had been fooled by Tenten's disguise, and honestly thought she was Ino. Yet he couldn't really understand why she would do something like that. Nevertheless, she hadn't spoken up since first revealing herself, and for once, Lee didn't want to be the one to break the silence.

Ami would've probably been the only one who wasn't so shocked at Tenten's appearance. In fact, she was more shocked at the fact that Lee, of all people, wasn't talking. She sighed, reaching down to fix the laces on her boots before clearing her throat and surprisingly getting everyone's attention. Well, almost everyone's. Both Tenten and Lee looked at her. Neji was still staring into the campfire, even though she knew that he was listening because he had glanced up at her for a slight second, and then returned to gazing in the fire.

Ami continued anyway. "Okay, I know that this was a huge shock to all of us, but not talking isn't going to help anything!. You guys have to say something! Sort all of this out!"

Silence.

"Why, Tenten?"

Ami had expected a reaction from either Tenten or Lee, but not from him.

Tenten didn't look up to meet those piercing lavender eyes. She continued to stare at the ground again. And she didn't answer. It was hard to suppress his

"You could've stayed at the village...it would've been no problem. So why did you transform as Ino and come with us anyway?" He received no answer. Well, at least not for a long time.

"I...didn't want to be left out..."

Neji Hyuuga was a prodigy amongst many. He was smart, and could see many of things with his Byakugan.

But he didn't see that coming.

It wasn't what she said; it was just way she had said it that made him look up. It sounded as though she were about to cry, but, as he studied her, she only seemed embarrassed. The light of the fire flickered in her brown eyes, and Neji caught himself staring after a while. He pulled himself to look away as Lee started talking.

"But Tenten...we only told you to stay because you're still injured from your last mission..." He reminded her. "We were doing it for you, not us." Tenten nodded.

"I know...And I thank you two for caring, but I'm fine. I just wanted to go on a mission with you guys again...It's been so long and I missed being together...as a team..."

"Tenten..." Neji started.

"You could've just said that!" Lee blurted out. "That's totally understandable!"

Tenten blinked before looking to Neji to see if he agreed. When he nodded, she smiled. "Thanks guys...and I'm sorry."

Neji shook his head. "No need to be sorry."

The two nins caught each other's gazes. In her eyes, he saw the truth. In his eyes, she saw nervousness. She gave him a confused look before he forced himself to turn away.

Ami laughed lightly. "See? That wasn't so hard was it?"

Neji and Tenten let out exasperated sighs, Lee shook his head and answered her question seriously, which only resulted in making Ami laugh harder.

For the remainder of the night, while the rest of the team talked, Neji thought back to when they had first began on their mission. _So if it was her and not Ino all along...then she knows... _

He had a hard time going to sleep with that on his conscious.

**In Sunagakure, the following day**

"I thank you for protecting me."

"It was our mission to do so."

Yoshiro nodded as he headed for his conference. According to him, he already had a group of shinobi from the Sand to see him on his way back to his own village. The rest of the team awaited him outside of the gates of Suna. When he returned, he managed to catch Tenten staring at him, but as soon as he caught her gaze, she turned away to talk to Ami. He blinked, before shaking his head lightly.

"Let's get started." The Hyuuga said as he walked past the others. Lee was right behind him, with Tenten and Ami both in the back, talking softly and occasionally giggling. They had three days before they would be back in Konoha. That thought alone made Neji nervous. At any time, Tenten could bring up that conversation they had when she was in disguise. On the other hand, he could be the first to talk, which may prove to be more difficult. Minutes felt like hours in his head as he tried to remember every little detail of her interrogation.

"_You two go out don't you?" _

"_Really? So why don't you two hook up or something?"_

"_What if I told you that I know for a fact that she likes you more than a friend?" _

Was she serious or was she toying with his mind? He felt his heartbeat quicken. What if she was telling the truth? What if she really did like him back? What if-

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted as a jolt of pain hit his body. He fell backwards, shutting his eyes tightly before opening them to look at the sky.

_What the hell was that?!_

"Neji...are you alright?"

He blinked, realizing that Tenten was leaning over him with Ami and Lee behind her.

"Yeah..." He sat up, rubbing his head lightly. "What happened?"

Tenten's expression turned from one of confusion to a more worried one as she glanced behind her. Lee returned the look. Her gaze returned to the prodigy.

"You...walked right into that tree..." She said softly, pointing to a tree in front of him.

Neji blinked in disbelief. Why didn't he see that there until just now?

"Are you sure you're okay?" Ami asked, her head tilted slightly.

Neji nodded, before picking himself up. "I'm sure."

"Good..." She said. She seemed concerned.

Well, at least she did before she erupted in a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

He frowned slightly, his eye twitching as she laughed.

"How...on earth...could...a Hyuuga...not see a tree?!" She managed, laughing during each pause in her sentence.

Irritated and slightly embarrassed, he stormed back on the path. Tenten shot a look at Ami before jogging lightly to catch up to him.

"Neji?"

No answer.

"...Neji?"

"What?"

She hesitated slightly before continuing. "What's wrong?"

He looked at her. "What?"

The hazel-eyed teen sighed softly. "You weren't paying attention to where you were going, so something _had _to be bothering you. What was it?"

"Nothing."

She gave him a look that told him she knew he was lying, but didn't press the conversation. Her gaze shifted back in front of her.

"If you feel like talking about it, I'm here."

He gave her no answer, but she didn't expect one in the first place. She didn't expect him to talk either, but it never hurt to hope.

The rest of the day continued in silence, with the exception of Lee and Ami talking softly in the back of the group. Neji hadn't said a word, and Tenten remained quiet, other than her soft humming. Both brunettes had a number of things on their minds, yet neither was too preoccupied to have dé jà vu and run into a tree. Before either of them could realize it, the sun had gone down and it was time to set up camp. If asked, both would've probably said around the same thing was lingering in their minds, all reverting back to Tenten's little trick. Of course, no one bothered to ask. Lee was too preoccupied with Ami, and both were doing most of the work for the campsite to even pay attention to the two daydreaming brunettes.

Tenten had a feeling that she knew what was preoccupying the Hyuuga so much that he was silent the entire night, and she couldn't help but feel guilty that she was the one who caused it. After all, it was something that was done under disguise and frankly, she was ashamed that she couldn't just come out and admit it from the get go. She knew she had to get him alone to explain everything, and Lee's next words provided the perfect chance.

"We need more firewood."

Neji looked up at the small stack of wood. Even Naruto would realize that it was nowhere near enough to last through the night. He sighed.

"I'll go."

"I'll go too."

The Hyuuga blinked as Tenten stood up, opting to join him. Something in his stomach said that this was perfect timing, but his conscious kept telling him that it was way too soon. He didn't have that much time to dwell on that, though.

"Let's go, Neji."

He stood up, following the weapon specialist into the woods, faintly aware of Ami and Lee whispering as they left. A deep breath left his lungs as soon as they were out of earshot. Apparently, Tenten was thinking the same thing. She turned around, her eyes glued to the ground. He took his first step in clearing his mind.

"Listen, Tenten…"

"I'm sorry that I didn't listen to you!"

Neji blinked. To say that he expected that would've been a downright lie. He was shocked, and as he always did when he was off guard, he was silent. Tenten misinterpreted it.

"I know you told me that it was alright, but it wasn't! Tsunade-sama is probably going to be angry with me also, so I understand!"

There was a long silence, and Tenten thought she might have said it too soon. Then he laughed. Neji laughed. This time, she was caught off guard.

"…Neji?"

"That was completely unexpected! And to think, I thought you knew what I was going to talk to you about!"

Tenten was confused. That wasn't it? Was she so off track that it was funny to him? She glared, pouting slightly.

"What's so funny?"

The pale-eyed teen shook his head, forcing his laughter to stop, although the smile stayed.

"Tenten, remember at the beginning of the mission, when you were Ino?"

Tenten nodded, not quite getting where the conversation was going.

"Do you remember what you were saying to me?"

She blinked a few times. Honestly, she didn't think he would remember _that_ of all things. A dark blush spread across her face and she looked away. For some reason, she already knew what was coming.

"Y-Yeah…"

"Was it true?"

The smile had faded, and his tone took on a more serious one. She gulped.

"Y-Yes…"

"Good."

She turned around, to question his response, but soon found that she was unable to talk. She couldn't think straight. Her head felt like a cloud. When she finally realized what happened, she couldn't believe it.

Hyuuga Neji, her childhood crush, was kissing her.

Her eyes lit up, and she wrapped her arms around him, kissing him back. How long had she waited for this? She couldn't really tell. All she knew that it finally happened, right here, right now, during the mission in which she thought would ruin her chances. She couldn't have been happier.

Neither could he.

**Kazuki:** I know, I know, it SUCKS, but I couldn't find what to do to fix it! -cries- I am so sorry, Minna-san!! But please, no matter how much you hate this chapter, please review!! -runs away crying in shame and embarrasment-


	5. Notice to all fans!

Well now, to all the fans of this old story, I have some great news! Although I will not be continuing, a nice person volunteered to keep this story going. ^^ Don't worry, it won't be going too far off track, since it'll be heading in the direction I had originally planned for, anywho. Please continuing reading here, on Sakura555's profile! Just copy and paste it into your browser. :3

.net/u/1752405/

Thank you all once again for following my story. I truly appreciate it and wish I could've been able to finish it off myself for you guys.

- Sayonara, minna-san!


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